Robberies rock northeast Delhi: In matter of minutes, pedestrian shot at; 2 robbed at gunpoint

NEW DELHI: In three separate incidents that happened in quick succession in northeast Delhi on Tuesday, a pedestrian was shot at for resisting a snatching attempt and two shopkeepers, including a woman, were robbed at gunpoint. Police suspect the involvement of the same gang in the back-to-back incidents, in which the assailants brandished pistols and assaulted victims, triggered panic along the busy Brahmpuri Road.The first incident unfolded when a 40-year-old man, Abid, was targeted during a mobile phone snatching attempt. Police said the assailants fired at him when he resisted, before fleeing the spot. Abid sustained a bullet injury to his foot and was rushed to Jag Pravesh Chandra Hospital, where he is undergoing treatment.Minutes later, what is suspected to be the same group allegedly struck again at Lakshmi General Store on Brahmpuri Road in New Usmanpur, where they threatened an elderly woman, Sunita, at gunpoint as she sat at the counter."They kept demanding money. When I said I didn't have any, one of them climbed inside the counter and started searching through the boxes. They took whatever cash they could find. They even checked my husband's pockets and took the keys. I had to plead with them not to take the keys. They threw them and ran away," Sunita said, adding that around Rs 10,000 was looted.The assailants then reportedly targeted Goswami Sweets, a shop located next to the store. CCTV footage from the sweet shop shows a masked man approaching the shop's counter with a firearm, threatening the shopkeeper and reaching for the cash drawer. When the shopkeeper resisted, the attacker struck him on the head with the butt of the gun, before fleeing after throwing items kept on display.Shopkeeper Om Prakash Puri said the incident had left traders terrified. "He brandished the pistol and demanded money. When I refused, he attacked me. There were others with him. How are we supposed to run our shops like this? " he said.Senior police officers, along with the crime team and forensic experts, inspected the spots. Police said multiple teams were formed and CCTV footage from the area was being scanned to identify and arrest the accused.